Thursday, December 13, 2012

Rep. Bill Posey Appointed to House Science, Space and Technology Committee

BREVARD COUNTY, Florida-
Congressman Bill Posey (R-Rockledge) has been
appointed to the House Science, Space and Technology Committee which has
jurisdiction over NASA, space exploration, aerospace, energy research
and development, and marine research. Posey's newly redrawn
Congressional District 8 now includes the Kennedy Space Center and is
home to the many of the nation’s leading aerospace firms and research
facilities.

“Space Coast residents will continue to have a strong advocate in
Congress for human space flight, space exploration and technological
innovation,” said Congressman Posey. “I’m looking forward to working
with incoming Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX), Ranking Member Eddie Bernice
Johnson (D-TX) and all the members of the House Science Committee to
ensure America remains the world’s leader in space and scientific
discovery.”

As a young man, Bill Posey worked on the nation’s Apollo Space Program
until being laid-off with thousands of other space workers following the
successful Moon landing in 1969. Having lived much of his childhood and
all of his adult life in Brevard County, Posey has remained an active
leader in space policy for many years serving as a member of the Florida
Space Authority Board of Supervisors, the Florida Commercial Space
Finance Corporation and as a member of the Board of Directors for Space
Florida. “I know how critical our space program and workforce are to our
nation's national security and economic competitiveness. We must
continue to press the envelope of human space flight advancement,” said
Posey.

In Congress, Posey has worked across the aisle to introduce legislation
to strengthen America’s space program. He was the lead sponsor of the American Space Access Act, a bipartisan bill to close the space gap between the Shuttle and Constellation program, the REAL Space Act, bipartisan legislation directing NASA to plan a return to the Moon, and the Race for Space Act, which passed the House last May. Posey is also a prime co-sponsor of the Space Leadership Preservation Act,
legislation to create a longer term for the NASA Administrator to
insulate the agency from political changes and to ensure that our
nation’s long-term space programs have the continuity that is needed to
see them through to completion.